


Unscheduled Stop

by writesometimes



Series: Domestic Din [2]
Category: The Mandalorian (TV)
Genre: Breaking bread together, Cobb Vanth's guide to the care and feeding of a certain mandalorian, Developing Relationship, Din and Cobb have huge crushes on one another, Domestic Fluff, Flirting, Fluff, M/M, bed sharing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-12
Updated: 2020-11-12
Packaged: 2021-03-10 02:34:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,701
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27516937
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/writesometimes/pseuds/writesometimes
Summary: Din looked from the child to the scuffed and faded Beskar helmet that sat on the shelf. He sighed tiredly as he thought of Cobb's face. The way he'd squinted against the bright light of Tatooine's twin suns with an easy smile on his lips and how his hair constantly fell into his eyes. He remembered sitting beside him around the campfire with the Tuskens out in the desert, studying the stubble along his jaw in the soft fire light. The Marshal had seemed sincere when they'd parted ways and he'd echoed Din's hopes that they would see one another again.
Relationships: Din Djarin/Cobb Vanth
Series: Domestic Din [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2019953
Comments: 42
Kudos: 434





	Unscheduled Stop

**Author's Note:**

> This can be read as a stand-alone story or as a follow up to my previous work, [I've Got Soul, But I'm Not A Soldier](https://archiveofourown.org/works/27426658/). Dealer's choice.

Din leaned back in the pilot's seat of the _Razor Crest_ and squeezed his eyes shut beneath his helmet. His morning had been less than ideal and he was getting a rather painful headache. He'd spent the last two days on a far flung planet, searching for a small group of Mandalorians he'd been told had settled in the area. All he'd gotten for his efforts were a few extra tins of food rations and a pesky injury from a misunderstanding-turned-fight at a diner. One assailant had gotten in a lucky shot, grazing Din near his collar bone where there happened to be a gap in his Beskar.   
  
He would live, the shot had hit mostly armor, but it still stung when he moved and the thin material of his undershirt stretched over the inflamed skin. He was most irritated by the smudge that still darkened the Beskar where the shot had landed. He'd find time to clean it later, when his head wasn't throbbing.  
  
A metallic clang down in the hold caught Din's attention and he spun around in his seat. "Kid?" he called, looking around for the child. The blankets he'd left him napping in sat empty in the passenger seat and Din sighed. He spun back around in his seat and flicked a few switches on the control panel before he got up to search for his tiny trouble maker. He'd barely made it down into the lower level of the _Crest_ before he heard more clanging noises. "If you got into the food kits again you're gonna be in trouble."  
  
A curious coo came from the far corner of the hold. Din sighed as he walked over and peeked behind a few crates he'd stashed away haphazardly after their last resupply. The helmet he'd recovered on Tatooine scooted across the floor behind the crates and Din couldn't help but chuckle. He bent down and plucked the helmet off the floor and smiled when the child looked up at him, eyes wide, mouth agape.   
  
"This isn't a toy," Din said, trying and failing to sound stern. The child reached up and grunted, flexing his little claws. "No." Din shook his head and set the helmet on a nearby shelf. The child stared up at him and blinked his large eyes slowly. Din took a deep breath and scooped the child up into his arms. "You're supposed to be napping."  
  
The child bared his teeth at Din and pointed at the helmet he'd been playing in. He grunted loudly and tried to squirm out of Din's grasp. Din sighed and stepped closer to the shelf, allowing the child to reach out and touch the helmet. The child laughed happily as he tapped at the visor. He looked back at Din and babbled incoherent noises at him.  
  
"He wasn't one of my kind, we had to move on," Din said quietly. The child babbled at him again, obvious irritation lacing his attempts to communicate. "There's nothing for us in Mos Pelgo," Din said, trying to reason with the cranky child in his grasp. The child squirmed in his arms and pointed at the helmet again before pointing up at Din's chest where he still sported a smudge on his Beskar from the blaster fire.   
  
Din looked from the child to the scuffed and faded Beskar helmet that sat on the shelf. He sighed tiredly as he thought of Cobb's face. The way he'd squinted against the bright light of Tatooine's twin suns with an easy smile on his lips and how his hair constantly fell into his eyes. He remembered sitting beside him around the campfire with the Tuskens out in the desert, studying the stubble along his jaw in the soft fire light. The Marshal had seemed sincere when they'd parted ways and he'd echoed Din's hopes that they would see one another again.   
  
Din swallowed thickly and tightened his grip on the child. He cooed softly and tilted his head to the side as he stared at Din with his large eyes. "Fine, but we can't stay for long. We're only going back to see if anyone has any new information on the armor." Din blamed the child's wide, pleading eyes and his brewing headache for not putting up more of a fight.   
  
The child squealed excitedly. Din shook his head and made his way back through the ship, setting the child back in his little bundle of blankets. "You're lucky you're cute," Din muttered as he tucked the blankets around the child's tiny body. 

* * *

Din put the _Crest_ down just outside Mos Pelgo after the suns of the planet had set. He shivered when he lowered the ramp of his ship and looked out over the settlement. Winter had gripped the area and the desert's night air had a chill to it that cut straight through Din to his bones. He snatched the pile of blankets off the passenger seat and arranged them around the child in his rucksack, trying to make sure he would be warm enough as they walked into town.   
  
He didn't make it far before he felt eyes tracking him. Carefully, he placed his hand over the blaster at his side and kept walking. A jangling sound caught Din's attention and he slowed to a stop. "You really should lose the spurs if you want to sneak up on anyone."  
  
"Who said I was trying to sneak up on you?" a familiar voice drawled from somewhere in the dark.   
  
Din looked to his right and smiled as Cobb wandered into view, a mischievous grin tugging at his lips. His hair looked brighter in the silver moonlight, falling gently over his forehead as he stepped closer. Din inhaled steadily. "Just out for a nice walk in these near-freezing temperatures then?" he asked sarcastically.  
  
"'Course not." Cobb glanced behind Din and tilted his head up, gesturing toward the _Crest_. "Strange ship lands just outside town it's my responsibility to check it out. No sneaking required." He ran a hand through his hair and studied Din for a moment. "What brings you back?"  
  
Din was silent as he contemplated his answer for a moment. If he was honest, Din had missed the Marshal's lopsided grin and inviting gaze. His heart thudded rapidly in his chest and he decided he wasn't ready for honesty yet. "My last lead turned into yet another dead end. Figured I'd head back here and see if anyone had any new information about the Mandalorian who'd originally owned the Beskar you had."   
  
It sounded weak even to Din's ears but Cobb just smiled, polite enough to indulge his flimsy excuse. "Can't say I've got any new leads for you, Mando, but you're welcome to stay as long as you like."  
  
Din didn't have time to respond before the child stirred in his rucksack, popping his head out and glancing around in the darkness. He broke into a wide grin when he spotted Cobb and reached his little arms up out of the rucksack, squawking eagerly in an attempt to get the Marshal to acknowledge him.   
  
Cobb's face lit up and he stepped forward instantly. "Hey there, little guy!" He reached over and stroked the child's head gently. The child grabbed a hold of Cobb's index finger and cooed excitedly. "I think he remembers me," Cobb chuckled.   
  
Din couldn't help the smile that spread over his lips. The child tightened his grip on Cobb's finger and shook it, making happy little noises.   
  
"You want to come back to my place?" Cobb asked, brows rising on his forehead. "It's warm, I got food, you can get the kid outta the cold and let him sleep a while."  
  
Din ignored the strange sensation settling in his chest and nodded once. "Thank you." He gestured for Cobb to lead the way and watched with a soft smile as the Marshal slipped his finger from the child's grasp and headed off for his home. The child grunted irritatedly and Din tried to get him to sit back down in his rucksack. He did his best to swaddle the child's little body in his blankets while he followed Cobb through town.   
  
They walked in silence for a few minutes before they finally arrived at Cobb's property and he led Din and the child inside and down the stairs, into his subterranean home. The lights flicked on and filled the home with soft, warm light. Cobb turned around and the sly smile on his lips faded as he noticed the blaster mark on Din's chest.   
  
"You been going around lookin' for trouble?" Cobb asked, nodding toward the dark smudge on Din's Beskar.   
  
"No need to look when it seeks you out," Din replied with a simple shrug. He pulled the child out of his rucksack and placed him down on one of the armchairs in Cobb's living room.   
  
"Are yah hurt?" Cobb asked, trying to sound nonchalant as he ran a hand through his hair. He eyed the mark on Din's Beskar again and winced.   
  
"I'll live. I've had worse."  
  
Cobb huffed out a soft laugh and shook his head as he wandered into Din's space. "Sit," he instructed as he croweded Din back against an empty armchair in his living room.   
  
Din cocked his head to the side and stared silently at the Marshal.   
  
Cobb sighed and rolled his eyes. "Sit," he repeated in exasperation.   
  
Din lowered himself down into the armchair and quirked a brow beneath his helmet.   
  
Cobb swallowed thickly and nodded. "Right, so... you want to take that off?" he gestured at Din's breast plate, "and I'll go get some stuff to clean you up." He didn't give Din a chance to argue before he ducked his head and disappeared into the bathroom.  
  
Din stared over at the child in the armchair across from him. "What did you get me into?" he whispered. The tiny green child just smiled back and babbled happily, clapping his little hands together a few times. Din shook his head and began unfastening his Beskar. He knew very well he didn't have to, that Cobb could be easily dealt with if Din was so inclined, that the child wasn't really responsible for their little unscheduled stop in Mos Pelgo, but he also knew there was a part of him that trusted Cobb Vanth and his ridiculous crooked smile and that part of him couldn't get his Beskar off fast enough.   
  
With a long sigh, Din set his chest plate on the low table in the center of the living room just as Cobb walked back into the room, a bowl of steaming liquid in one hand and a clean cloth in the other. He glanced from the Beskar occupying the low table to the Mandalorian occupying his armchair.   
  
With a small smile, Cobb stepped into Din's space and leaned down a bit. "Here, hold this," he instructed as he handed Din the bowl of warm liquid. "I half expected to come back out here and find you and the kid gone," Cobb chuckled as he slowly reached out and pulled Din's undershirt down with his index and middle fingers.   
  
Din said nothing as Cobb's finger tips grazed his warm skin. He watched carefully behind his visor as the Marshal's hair fell across his forehead as he bent farther into his space and inspected his skin. Din held his breath as Cobb tugged the shirt collar lower.  
  
Cobb hissed as he discovered the angry, red wound near Din's collarbone. He dipped the cloth into the bowl of liquid and dabbed it against the wound. "It's just a little warm water and disinfectant but it should help," he muttered as he breathed heavily, eyes taking in the small expanse of Din's skin that was visible.   
  
Din finally exhaled as Cobb removed the cloth from his skin. He remained silent, eyes roaming over Cobb's face behind his visor. He felt almost intoxicated by the man's closeness, and leaned back in the armchair to give himself a little breathing room. Din reached forward to set the bowl on the table beside his armor.   
  
Cobb cleared his throat and stood back up. Gently, he placed his hands on either side of Din's helmet and applied the slightest amount of pressure. "Got anything under here needs fixin'?"  
  
Din reached up and wrapped his hands around Cobb's wrists, stopping the man. "I can't take it off."  
  
"Even if you're injured?" Cobb's brow furrowed, worry seeping into his features.   
  
"No."  
  
"I won't tell anyone, I promise. I just want to make sure --"  
  
"I can't."   
  
The child grunted unhappily behind them.   
  
Cobb sighed and stared at Din's visor, unknowingly meeting his gaze. "So even if you're bleedin' to death under there, I can't help you?"  
  
"No one's seen my face since I was a child," Din confessed, voice low.  
  
Cobb tilted his head to the side and studied Din. "Sounds a little lonely," he offered softly.   
  
Din shrugged. "This is the way."  
  
Cobb nodded once and gave Din a tight smile. He backed out of the other man's space slowly and focused his attention on the cloth in his hands. "Can't say I'm not a little... disappointed, but I understand. Man's gotta do what he feels is right." He wound the cloth around his fingers a few times anxiously before he glanced back up. "There's a little box of first aid supplies in the bathroom, under the sink. Go make sure everything's good under there." Cobb reached out and gently tapped the temple of Din's helmet with his index finger, a soft smile on his lips.   
  
Din didn't breathe as he stared at Cobb. He swallowed thickly and finally forced himself to draw in a breath. "Thank you," he muttered as he stood and brushed past Cobb on his way to the bathroom. The door clicked closed behind him and he took a deep breath before he pulled his helmet up and off his head. He stared at himself in the small, worn mirror that hung on the wall above the bathroom sink.   
  
He couldn't find any real injuries, just a few scrapes and bruises really. There was a cut above his eye that looked a bit worse than the rest, but overall he would survive. Din leaned over and dug the small first aid kit out from beneath the sink anyway, figuring a little disinfectant never hurt. He made quick work of dabbing some on the worst of his scrapes and then leaned forward, gripping the sides of the sink, as he stared at his own reflection in the mirror.   
  
Din took a steadying breath as he looked over his features. He wondered briefly what Cobb would think of his face. Would he be surprised to discover he had brown eyes? What would he think of his mustache? He shook his head and sighed, it wouldn't do him any good to dwell on such thoughts. He reached for his helmet and was lowering it back over his head when he heard a bark of laughter come from the living room.   
  
Din cracked the bathroom door open a sliver and peered out. He spied Cobb sitting cross-legged on the floor, the child sitting in front of him eagerly gnawing on little scraps of food Cobb was passing over to him. The grin on the Marshal's face was wide and full of amusement as he watched the tiny child eat. Din rested his head against the door and smiled, content to watch the scene before him for a while.  
  
Cobb leaned forward and wiped a spot of drool from the child's chin. "Slow down, bud, don't wanna choke," he chuckled. He shook his head as the child cooed at him and reached out for more food. "Does your Dad ever feed you?"  
  
"Yes, he's just a bottomless pit," Din retorted as he walked into the living room.   
  
Cobb looked over and shot Din a wry grin. "He's a growing boy," he reached out and stroked one of the child's long ears, "Not his fault." Carefully, he scooped the child up in his arms and stood. He passed him over to Din, a warm smile spreading over his face as he took in the sight of the Mandalorian and his tiny ward. "Although you might want to teach him what he can and can't eat. He was gnawing on the heel of one of my boots a little while ago." Cobb laughed and reached over, tapping the child's tiny nose gently.   
  
"There doesn't seem to be much he _can't_ eat," Din replied as he adjusted his grip on the child.   
  
"Well, in that case, my cooking probably won't hurt him. You want to stick around for dinner?" Cobb was already wandering away, heading for the kitchen with an inviting grin. "Made a little something last night, all I'd have to do is reheat it."  
  
Din sighed and glanced down at the child. He blinked at Din and lowered his ears, cooing softly. Din shrugged. The child wrapped his little green claws around Din's thumb and made a soft noise before turning his attention to the kitchen, watching as Cobb moved about the small space and pulled a couple baking tins out of a cabinet.   
  
"Can't be worse than anything Peli's fed us," Din reasoned. The child babbled excitedly and began to squirm in his arms. Din bent down and set the child on the floor and laughed silently to himself as he watched him scurry across the floor into the kitchen.  
  
Cobb smiled down at the child and let him follow him about the kitchen as he reheated their food. It didn't take long, and soon Din was being passed a plate of hot food and a glass of something to drink. Cobb scooped the child up off the floor and rested him against his hip. "You can take that in my room if you'd like. I can feed this little monster."  
  
"Are you sure?" Din asked slowly.  
  
Cobb smiled down at the child and nodded. "We'll manage."  
  
With a silent nod, Din crossed through Cobb's modest home and entered the man's bedroom. He quietly shut the door, flicked on the overhead light and sat down on the floor, back against the cool surface of the door. He heard stirring out in the living room and waited a moment before he pulled his helmet off. Whatever it was Cobb had cooked, it smelled good and he was keen to eat. A thump against the door startled him but it didn't open so Din just shrugged and took a bite of his dinner.   
  
"When's the last time you actually had a conversation with someone while you ate?" Cobb asked, voice raised to be heard through his bedroom door.   
  
Din froze as he realized the noises he heard must have been Cobb settling himself on the other side of the door. "It's, uhm, it's been a while," Din confessed around a mouthful of food.  
  
Cobb nodded to himself as he let the child steal a piece of meat off his plate. "You feel like talkin'?" he asked as he leaned his head back against the door.  
  
Din swallowed roughly and took a sip of his drink. "Uhm... sure," he mumbled.  
  
"Where'd you pick the little guy up at?" Cobb asked as he passed the child a vegetable.  
  
"I can't... He's... It's -- "  
  
"Classified. Okay." Cobb smiled at the child and stroked the top of his head. "What about you then? Where'd you come from?" he asked casually, popping part of a potato in his mouth before passing the rest to the child.  
  
Din was silent on the other side of the door. He knew that Cobb wasn't a threat to him or the child, that much was clear when he returned the Beskar to Din and didn't report him and the child when they left. The fact that he'd welcomed them back not only to his town but into his own home was a pretty obvious sign he meant them no harm. Still, Din was cautious by nature and he wasn't sure how much he was ready to share with the Marshal yet.   
  
Cobb sighed after the silence stretched on for a bit. "Okay, how 'bout I do the talking then?" When there was no response from Din he chuckled quietly and began filling him in on everything that had happened since he'd last been to Mos Pelgo.   
  
Din sat and smiled to himself as Cobb's muffled voice filtered through the bedroom door. Every so often Cobb would chuckle and Din could imagine his soft smile, the playfulness of his gaze. It was nice, sitting to eat a meal and not feeling completely isolated.  
  
Before long they had finished their dinner and Cobb had excused himself to leave his dishes in the sink. Din lingered behind the door for a moment, relishing the warm feeling that was spreading in his chest, before he slipped his helmet back on and met Cobb in the kitchen to deposit his own dishes in the sink.   
  
The child squawked at their feet and yawned. Din scooped him up and held him to his chest. "Ready for bed?" he asked as he walked into the living room and laid the child in an armchair. He didn't put up a fuss and Din reached into the little rucksack he'd left nearby and wrapped him up in his blankets. The child cooed quietly and blinked a few times at Din before he fell asleep.   
  
"Kid's got the right idea," Cobb chuckled as he brushed past Din and walked into his bedroom.   
  
Din watched as the Marshal's lanky body moved about his room, turning on the lamp on the nightstand, shutting the overhead light off, pulling the blankets back on the bed, adjusting the pillows just so. Din sighed as he turned around, gaze bouncing between the sleeping child and the empty armchair across from him.   
  
"You coming?" Cobb called from his dimly lit bedroom.  
  
Din swallowed a lump in his throat. "I'm fine in here," he said, the warble in his voice masked by his helmet.   
  
Cobb leaned in the doorway of his room and rolled his eyes. "Fine, sleep out there in a tiny chair and get a back ache." He watched as Din looked from the chair, to the child, to where he leaned in the doorway. "Big bed, plenty of room." With that Cobb sauntered back into his room and continued to ready himself for bed.   
  
Din glanced quickly at the child, taking in his peacefull sleeping face, before he decided to allow himself a little peace and walked into Cobb's room. He tugged his boots off and set them by the door, placed the rest of his Beskar on the dresser beside Cobb's belt and kerchief, and then he finally, carefully, sat down on the mattress. Cobb stretched out on the other side of the bed and yawned as he pulled the blankets over himself. Din took a shaky breath and laid down, slowly pulling the rest of the blankets over his body.   
  
"Thank you," Din said, inhaling slowly as he shifted in the bed, elbow brushing against Cobb's. He rolled over onto his side, facing away from the other man.  
  
"Hey, what was I gonna do? Leave you two out there in the cold?" Cobb shut off the lamp on the nightstand and the room went dark.  
  
Din stared through his visor into the dark and tried to ignore how close his feet rested next to Cobb's at the end of the bed. "You could have," he reasoned grimly.  
  
"Sure I could have, but I'd have felt like an ass," Cobb countered.  
  
"Why?" Din hated how small and unsure his voice sounded.  
  
Cobb sighed heavily and let his shoulders rest against Din's. "You helped me out before, it would have been wrong not to return the favor. Plus... I like you. You're sorta gruff and don't talk much, hell I don't even know your name, but I know that you take care of that little guy out there like he's your own and you helped the people of this town so you can't be all bad."  
  
"Din."  
  
"What?"  
  
"My name, it's Din."  
  
A wide smile stretched across Cobb's face. "Good to know you, Din."  
  
"Likewise," Din replied, his feet drifting closer to Cobb's beneath the blanket.

* * *

When Din woke, Cobb's sleeping face softly illuminated by the pale morning light filtering in through a small, high window was the first thing he saw when he opened his eyes. He tried not to think too much about what it meant that they'd shifted in their sleep to face one another, or that he'd been so comfortable in Cobb's bed that he hadn't immediately been woken up when Cobb had stirred by his side. He reached out slowly and brushed the Marshal's hair off his forehead.  
  
"You want breakfast?" Cobb asked behind a lazy grin, eyes still closed.  
  
Din froze.   
  
Cobb's eyes opened slowly and his smile grew as he took in Din, hand still hovering near his temple. Cobb propped himself up on one of his elbows, resting his head on his hand. "I can make something if you want," he said fighting back a yawn.  
  
Din snatched his hand back and shook his head. "We should get going," he said quickly. He threw the blankets off his body and climbed out of bed.   
  
Cobb rolled over and watched as Din jammed his feet back into his boots. "Suit yourself." He rose from the bed languidly and stretched his arms over his head.  
  
Din said nothing as he tore his eyes from Cobb's body and made his way back out into the living room. The child still slept soundly on the armchair. Carefully, Din picked him up and placed him in his rucksack, trying to adjust the blankets around him so he would stay comfortable and warm. Despite his best efforts, the child stirred and whined as Din tried to tuck the blankets around his tiny body. "Go back to sleep,"  
he pleaded, stroking one of his fingers down the child's face.  
  
Luckily, the child seemed to sense it was still early, and simply curled into the blankets and allowed sleep to overtake him once more. Din sighed in relief and started gathering up his Beskar, carefully putting it back on for the day. When he was done with his armor, and had slung the child's rucksack back over his shoulders without waking him, he found Cobb watching him from the kitchen with a small smile.   
  
"Brewed you some caf." Cobb pressed a warm thermos into Din's hands as the Mandalorian wandered into his space.  
  
"Thank you," Din murmured, clasping both of his hands around the thermos.   
  
"You'll bring the thermos back, right?"  
  
Din stared at the man silently.  
  
Cobb laughed after a moment. "I'm kidding. Don't worry about it."  
  
"You're a good man, Cobb Vanth," Din said, his smile seeping into his words.  
  
"I try," Cobb replied with a slight shrug.   
  
Din nodded once and slipped past the Marshal, heading for the stairs that lead to the front door. He'd only climbed three steps before Cobb was right behind him, a gentle and warm hand on his hip  
  
Cobb leaned forward and pressed his lips to the temple of Din's helmet briefly. "For luck," he murmured through mischievous grin.   
  
Din took a shallow breath and tried to focus on anything but the Marshal's lips in the soft morning light coming through the small window on the front door.   
  
Cobb dropped a few pieces of food into the child's rucksack. "And that's so he doesn't get cranky when he wakes up."   
  
They stood in the narrow stairway for a moment, staring at one another in silence before Din remembered how to form words. "Thank you, for everything," Din said with a nod as he climbed the last few steps and opened the front door.  
  
"Any time," Cobb replied with an easy grin.  
  
The child woke halfway back to the _Crest_ and instead of crying, immediately stuffed a little piece of bread Cobb had dropped into his rucksack in his mouth. Din smiled to himself and shook his head.

**Author's Note:**

> Hey so I'm ready to rip my own eyes out and go lie in the street over these two, who's with me? 
> 
> Gold star for anyone who can find the subtle ' _Once Upon A Time In Hollywood_ ' reference cause even though he's not in it very long I love Olyphant's role in that too and it's just a favorite movie of mine so I couldn't resist. 
> 
> [tumblr](https://imwritesometimes.tumblr.com/)

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [I'll Be Out Here](https://archiveofourown.org/works/27654476) by [Fox (Foxen)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Foxen/pseuds/Fox)




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